A Disney Hanukkah: Story and Song at Epcot Center

If you happen to be in Walt Disney World's Epcot Center this month, you'll likely encounter Disney's tribute to Hanukkah. Every year Epcot features a perky storyteller relating the history of Hanukkah with a personal twist. Actually it's a carefully scripted performance. How do we know? We've seen different storytellers use the exact same words. And this year is no different. It's part of a storytelling series at the country pavilions. The Hanukkah story is told at The American Adventure pavilion, and leaves visitors knowing at least something about menorahs, dreidels, latkes, oil, Antiochus, and Judah Maccabee.

But wait! There's more. Voices of Liberty, the resident a cappella singing group at The American Adventure gives a two minute nod to Hanukkah by singing a short medley including I Have a Little Dreidel and Hevenu Shalom Aleichem. Like the storytelling, the singing is exactly the same every year, down to the short introduction to the medley and the Dickens caroling costumes. But what did you expect? Spontaneity? It is Disney, after all, and Jewish visitors will likely be pleased at the inclusion of some blue and white in the otherwise red and green holiday festivities.

We posted a video clip of the a cappella performance when we started this blog in 2009, but we only had 28 subscribers then, so you probably didn't see it. For our current 3,000 plus subscribers, here is the storytelling video, followed by the Voices of Liberty medley as performed last year.

Enjoy, and remember...we light the first candle this Saturday night!
Shabbat shalom and Happy Chanukah!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)